Summary of Monitoring Arrangements

Article 6(5) of the Statute of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (“Mechanism”) and Rule 14(A)(iv) of the Mechanism’s Rules of Procedure and Evidence provide that the Mechanism shall monitor cases referred to national courts by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and the Mechanism, with the assistance of international and regional organisations and bodies.

For those cases referred to Rwanda, the Mechanism has partnered with the Kenyan Section of the International Commission of Jurists (“ICJ Kenya”) to make available the services of qualified experts to assist the Mechanism as monitors, and to administer and manage the monitors in the monitoring of the referred cases.

On 15 January 2015, the Memorandum of Understanding Between the United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals and the Kenyan Section of the International Commission of Jurists Concerning the Monitoring of Cases Referred to the Republic of Rwanda (“MOU”) was concluded, for the monitoring of cases referred to Rwanda, namely the Uwinkindi and Munyagishari cases. On 16 August 2016, a Signed Exchange of Letters revised the MOU to include monitoring of the Ntaganzwa case.

The monitors engaged by ICJ Kenya, inter alia, attend, observe, and report on all national court hearings, including pre-trial, High Court and Supreme Court proceedings, and review all relevant court files. The monitors further collect information deemed relevant to, inter alia, the progress of the proceedings, the fair trial rights and the conditions of detention of the accused. They conduct regular visits to the detention facility where the accused is held, and meet with the accused, his defence counsel, the prison authorities and other relevant parties on a regular basis. The monitors report to the President of the Mechanism (“President”) on a monthly basis. The President takes into account whether a given report contains confidential information before approving the reports and will consider whether any matters raised in the report warrant further clarification from the monitors. Once they are approved, the reports are filed on the record either confidentially or publicly, depending on the content of the report. In case a confidential version of the monitoring report is filed, a public redacted version will also be filed.

For cases which have been referred to France, the Mechanism currently has appointed a staff member to serve as interim monitor of the two cases referred to France, namely the Bucyibaruta and Munyeshyaka cases.

Similar to the monitors in Rwanda, the monitor in France attends and observes all court hearings, and reviews all relevant case files. The monitor further collects information deemed relevant to the progress of the proceedings and the fair trial rights of the accused from all available sources, including judges, prosecutors, defence counsel, civil parties and their lawyers and the accused, in presence of his counsel, as appropriate. The monitor reports his or her findings to the President on a quarterly basis. Again, the President takes into account whether a given report contains confidential information before approving the reports and will consider whether any matters raised in the report warrant further clarification from the monitors. Once approved, the monitoring reports are filed on the record either confidentially or publicly, depending on the content of the report. If the monitoring report is filed confidentially, a public redacted version is also filed.